Review: Enlan EL-01BA (half-serrated and black) *Picture Heavy*

This is my very first knife review, so any constructive criticisms are welcomed. :wink:

Today I got my Enlan EL-01BA from here: http://www.aliexpress.com/snapshot/207023330.html
The price was $13.79 including tracked shipping, but itā€™s now $15.32; it was on 10% sale.

I was specifically looking for a black half-serrated blade, and aliexpress had one cheaper than in eBay.

Ordered: Nov. 17, 2012
Shipped: Nov. 19, 2012
Delivered: Nov. 28, 2012

Specs:

The packaging was the usual Chinese packaging, the one we get from DX, Tmart, etc.

Lets have a lookā€¦
Front:

Back:

With a ruler:

Opened:

With a ruler:

The build quality was excellent with no flaws at all.

Felt quite solid in the hand especially with he hefty 150g weight. (according to specs.)
I donā€™t have a scale right now, so Iā€™ll update this measurement later.

Time to put on the macro lens!

Enlan logo & model:

With a ruler:

Precise serrations with no flaws at all.

Back:

The blade material is 8Cr13MoV, which has a composition of 0.8% carbon and 13% chrome.

Edge:

Didnā€™t do anything serious with the blade, so I canā€™t say anything about the real hardness yet.

Liner Lock:

I found the lock to be very stiff, so it sometimes hurts to push the liner to close the blade.
Canā€™t close it with one hand, or is my thumb just not strong enough?

Clip:

While taking photos, I just noticed that the clip paint was starting to chip off.
Otherwise, itā€™s very solid and is great for EDC.

Pivot Screw:

Enlan uses a stupid proprietary pivot screw and sells custom screwdrivers for $10. No thanks.
If anyone has any alternatives, please let me know!

Thumbs up!
+Solid knife overall, weighing a hefty 150 grams.
+No production blemishes at all, very clean and well made.
+Half-serrated design allows versatile operation.
+Great handle grip, feels nice to hold.
+Well made clip for EDC

Thumbs down!
-Stiff liner that makes closing the knife uncomfortable.
-Ridiculous proprietary pivot screw, canā€™t adjust at all.

Overall, Iā€™m very pleased with this purchase. For $15 including registered shipping, this knife will start you off on the right foot if youā€™re getting into knives like me. If you already have many, this one is certainly the one you should look at.

Hope I helped, and again, please leave any constructive criticism for improvement. :smiley:

Cheers!

Nice review. What did you think about the grip? and blade durability?

Thanks for the review. You could use a dremel with a small cutting blade and make a small incision though the middle of the nut. Afterwards you can use a ordinary screwdriver to tune the nut.

A good looking knife in any of its iterations. Iā€™ve read that using a drill chuck to adjust the pivot tension works, but have not tried it yet.

Iā€™m close to ordering a second EL-01a from Joben [Lazy Lizard Gear] w/ the slotted pivot head and upgraded washers. Iā€™ve got some different colored G10 scales coming to further customize one knife.

As to the EL-01 durability check out the ā€œhard useā€ video on the Lazy Lizard Gear youtube page. What Joben does to his personal EL-01 will make you cringe. And then he makes a simple adjustment and the knife is a good as newā€¦ā€¦

Some have used a drill chuck to engage the slots on the pivot screw.

Nice macro shots! :beer:

I think the drill chuck method only works for the other triangle style pivot.

You know Iā€™m not normally a big fan of serrations, but this one looks beautiful executed.

I have the khaki handled version from Joben and its a fantastic knife. The steel is very prone to rusting though, as most 8CR13MOVs are, so just keep an eye on it. Though I do think the black coating on this blade will help out immensely. Other than that though its a good one for the money.

Thanks guys for the input.

The grip feels solid and the ergonomic curves position the fingers really well and is quite comfortable.

The blade durability I donā€™t know yet because I havenā€™t tried out anything extreme, but as Kavawava said, it might rust. Then again, Jobenā€™s video below does show a great deal of abuse but can be fixed with a small touch.

Thanks for the tips, I just used a small (-) screwdriver to lock into one of the triangle sides and it seemed to work. I just loosened the blade a little to make opening a little easier.

Cheers!

Iā€™ve used the drill chuck method on mine. It works.

Thanks for the drill chuck suggestions, but I was first confused because I was like ā€œHow the heck would a drill chuck fit in?ā€ But I realized that you were talking about the other model where there werenā€™t edges around the screw, and that prevented me from using a drill chuck.

Just a (-) screwdriver works for me. :slight_smile:

Edit: I find the liner lock too stiff. It hurts my thumb when I chose it, and itā€™s certainly not closable with one hand. (I use my other hand.) Is this normal? :open_mouth:

Reminds me of my Kershaw RJ II knife.

All of my Elan liner locks work easily. Maybe you should do some thumb wrestling to build up your thumb strength :zipper_mouth_face:

Ha, I always lost when I thumb wrestled.

This is my punishment for not practicing. :wink:

Thanks very much! Sticky'd.

Well that was unexpected, I was on the forum browsing for flashlight reviews and wandered in here. When I saw my name a few times I figured Iā€™d register and say Hi. Thatā€™s my video linked above.

I suspect that the lock is sticky. Do you have to push hard then it sorta pops, possibly with an audible click? If so, sticky lock.

It happens most commonly with titanium liner/frame locks but occasionally with steel ones too. I do know something that may help at least temporarily: Take a pencil and, with the knife closed, rub it on the part of the tang that the lock bar touches until thereā€™s a coating of graphite from the pencil. Iā€™ve seen some people say Sharpie ink works too but Iā€™ve never tried that myself.

It may improve naturally as the knife wears in too.

Welcome to the party Joben!

Thanks for the review!

Just been reading over on the British Blades website the the UK borderforce has seized a members Enlan EL-01BA as a Gravity Knife.

I have that knife and another flipper on the way from FastTech, so fingers crossed :frowning: luckily my Nyx assisted opener had not shipped (they would have called that a flick Knife ) so cancelled it and ordered a navy 631 instead.

The EL-01 a gravity knife, huh? Sheesh! It sounds like far to many people have become employed by a government to justify their own worthless jobs. Hopefully you will receive your new knife before it gets confiscated by another incompetent zealot.

Iā€™ve the silver one, non-serrated blade. Itā€™s a very sturdy knife, very thick blade and high quality steel. Itā€™s like a Convoy S2 flashlight, everyone should have at least one.